Flashing strip



Patented Apr. 13, 1943 UNITED 'STATES PATENT OFFICE FLASHING STRIP Alonzo W. Bailey, Cleveland, Ohio Application June 19, 1941, Serial No. 398,782 Claims. (Cl. Z2-426)A This invention relates broadly to building structures and more specifically to flashing for sealing the seams between basement floors and foundation walls or footings.

In buildings constructed with concrete basement floors it is customary irrespective the type of material employed in the foundation wall or footings, to cast the iioor slab after the foundation has been set. This practice invariably produces a seam or crack at the junction of the floor with the wall and permits the seepage of water or the presence of moisture in the basement through capillary attraction.

Various expedients, such as agricultural drain tile, waterproof surface coatings and caulking have been employed, from time to time, in an effort to eliminate this difficulty but none o-f these expedients have been found satisfactory either in point of durability or eiciency.

The invention contemplated herein comprises generally a series of flanged strips or plates inset in the foundation wall and fico-r grouting in such a manner as to span the seam between floor and wall or footing and thus arrest the passage of moisture therethrough.

A further object of the invention resides in ethe provision of an expansion joint or yieldable fold in the flashing strips in the zone of the seam to accommodatesuch movement of the footings `as occur when the building settles and further to facilitate fleXure of the strip, compensative of dimensional inaccuracies in the building structure.

Other objects and advantages more or less ancillary to the foregoing and the manner in which all the various objects are realized will appear in the following description, which considered in connection with the accompanying drawing, sets forth the preferred embodiment of the invention.

Referring to the drawing which is illustrative of the preferred embodiment of the invention:

Fig. l is a vertical section through a foundation wall, footing and basement floor illustrating the improved dashing plate in use;

Fig. 2 is a vertical sectional View through a foundation wall and footing showing certain of the concrete Wall forms in place and the flashing strip supported thereby;

Fig. 3 is a similar sectional View of a foundation wall and footing illustrating the position of the flashing strip after the concrete forms have been removed;

Fig. 4 is a view in perspective of the improved flashing strip; and

Fig. .5 is a vertical section through an interior Wall and floor construction illustrating an application of the ashing in such environs.

As illustrated, the improved flashing I0 comprises a strip of metal formed with marginal flanges II and I2 and a plurality of lineal folds I3 extending throughout the medial aXis thereof. In use the strips are partially embedded in the masonry forming the foundation wall or footing and partially embedded in the grouting of the concrete oor, the strips being arranged in end to end relation with each other and soldered to form a continuous band around the periphery of the floor slab. In the concrete wall structure illusltrated in Fig. 2 the flashing strip is supported by timbers or wooden blocks I4 and I5 constituting a portion of the concrete form, the strip being arranged with the crest of the fold I3 in the parting line or seam I6 between the wall I I and the licor slab I8. The blocks I4 and I5 in the concrete form may be of rectangular transverse section, as illustrated or may be constructed with angular edge portions (not shown) to accommodate the support of the fiashing strip inthe position illustrated in Fig. 3. In either event one or more of the folds I3 should be disposed Within the seam between the foundation wall and licor slab in order to facilitate independent movement thereof such as occurs when the building settles without rupture of the metallic strip.

The flange II and the portion of the ashing within the wall I1 is preferably turned upwardly when assembled in the form to assure the intimate engagement of the concrete with the strip during the erection of the wall. The fiange I2 and portion of the flashing within the door is preferably turned downwardly during assembly of the form in order to restrain the flow of concrete and produce a void or air cell I 9 beneath the strip when the floor is cast. As illustrated in Fig. 5, the improved ashing may be employed to seal the seam between a floor slab and a partition Wall or stair well having a subterranean footing. In such environs the flashing strip is arranged as heretofore described though a second ashing strip I0 may be inset in the opposed face of the same wall to seal the joint between the Wall and the fioor in the second room.

The dashing I0 is preferably formed of sheet copper strips formed of appropriate length to facilitate the ready handling thereof during the erection of the building and while in transitu. Obviously, other rust resisting materials possessing sufficient resiliency to flex under the movement of the foundation wall as it settles may be used with equal faculty in substitution for copper. The ends of the flashing strips are preferably overlapped and soldered as the strips are set or the wall is cast thereabout though effective results may be obtained by uniting the ends of contiguous strips with the conventional folded tinners joint.

In a concrete wa1l the flashing is assembled in the forms with a portion thereof extended into the interior mold, whereupon the wall and footings are poured or cast. Subsequently the forms are removed, leaving a portion of the flashing strip extending from the face of the Wall into the interior of the room or basement. The protruding portion of the flashing is disposed in a plane dening substantially the mid thickness of the door so that the strip will be fully submerged in the concrete when the floor slab is cast.

It will be understood that the improved flashing may be used in conjunction with tile, brick or other forms of masonry and that the invention is not restricted, in application, to the concrete foundation walls shown in the accompanying drawing. It will be further understood that the invention comprehends the application of the ashing to arrest the flow of water downwardly as in a wall and roof structures or wall and oor which is above the grade line.

Although the foregoing description is necessarily of a detailed character, in order that the invention may be completely set forth, it is to be f understood that the specific terminology is not intended to be restrictive or confining, and that various rearrangements of parts and modifications of detail may be resorted to without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention as herein claimed.

I claim:

1. In a building structure embodying a foundation wall and basement floor defining a seam at the juncture of the floor with the Wall, flashing therefor to preclude the passage of moisture therethrough comprising a continuous strip of metal embedded in the wall and oor and arranged to span the seam and a fold in said strip in which at least one of the legs of the metal forming the fold is disposed in its entirety Within the seam to facilitate independent movement of the Wall in relation to the floor.

2. In a building embodying a foundation Wall and a concrete floor constructed with a seam at the junction of the oor with the wall, ashing therefor comprising a strip of copper, anges along the longitudinal edges thereof, a V fold within the medial axis thereof, said strip being embedded in the wall and floor with at least one of the legs of the V fold disposed in said seam.

3. Flashing to preclude the passage of water through the joint between a foundation wall and 'a basement floor, comprising a flexible rust resisting metallic strip, flanges along the side edges thereof to facilitate anchorage of the strip in the wall an-d oor respectively, a plurality of folds along the media axis 0f the strip, one of the folds defining a sharp angle and a straight vertical Wall disposed within the joint between the wall and the floor to facilitate independent movement of the wall and the floor without rupture of the strip.

4. In a building structure embodying a concrete wall and a concrete floor cast with a seam at the junction thereof, flashing for sealing said seam comprising a strip of metal embedded in the wall and floor to span the seam, va plurality of folds in said strip constituting a double walled lineal rib, the metal forming one of the walls of said rib being disposed in said seam.

5. In a building structure embodying a concrete wall and a concrete floor cast with a seam at the junction thereof, flashing for sealing said seam comprising a strip of metal embedded in the Wall and floor to span the seam, a V fold in said strip disposed in said seam, with the open end of the V in said seam, whereby said V fold may flex Without rupture upon separation of the floor and wall.

ALONZO W. BAILEY. 

